PhotoA spinning, silver geodesic sphere reminiscent of the “Dancing With the Stars” mirror ball trophy is moving through space and blinking as it orbits Earth every 90 minutes. Known as the Humanity Star, it was built to reflect the sun’s light and “encourage people to consider their place in the universe,” according to its website. Some astronomers are not pleased. Although the object “sounds like jolly nice fun,” it also “fills me with a big dose of dread,” Caleb A. Scharf, director of the Columbia Astrobiology Center at Columbia University, wrote in Scientific American. Space is already polluted by artificial light, making it more difficult for astronomers to monitor cosmic events, he wrote.

Source: New York Times January 28, 2018 17:26 UTC